theorellior:Shakin_Haitian: Wouldn't that allow for a greater range of subtlely since the people making the music don't have to worry about quieter sound being lost in the air between the listener and loudspeakers?

One would think, but it pretty much means people blast their ears directly and all nuance is lost.

There are good earbuds, but most people are using the ones that came with their iphone or whatever. The reason music is normalized to 100% is because people decide if they like a song in about 2 seconds and if that 2 seconds is not full volume you lose them.

So as with most things wrong with modern society, the real reason things suck is that people don't have or spend enough time to do things right.

KeatingFive:Arkanaut: Cthulhu_is_my_homeboy: FabulousFreep: I've needed ear plugs for the last few movies. Are people really that deaf or is there something I'm missing in the alarmingly loud cacophony of noise that seems to be movie sound tracks ?

Some accounting people figured out years ago that, statistically speaking, movies that sell more tickets are louder. So of course theater people interpreted that research as "turning up the volume will raise ticket sales". The same thing has happened with top-40 music (louder songs sell better, so the studios alter the dynamic range to make the whole song louder).

Sorry to extend the threadjack, but a friend (who's supposedly in "the industry") tells me, it's because most music these days is mostly heard through earbuds and not proper speakers, so any subtlety in volume is essentially pointless.

I'd have to disagree, I think it's because of music in cars. Road noise washes out certain frequencies, and quiet passages disappear. NPR I have to completely adjust the tone to hear everything at a comfortable volume.

When I roll into my neighborhood, I realize I'm blasting NPR louder than the kids are blasting their club music because road noise easily washes it out. I use to get embarrassed, but now I find it hard to care.

Oh and as for women being cold, yeah that's fine, they can be as cold as they want. But when I'm already in a tshirt and shorts and hot, they don't get to turn the heat up. They get to put on a goddamned sweater, or more accurately some actual clothing.

You don't get to set the thermostat to 85 in the summer just because you want to look sexy in your slut clothes.

lewismarktwo:theorellior: Shakin_Haitian: Wouldn't that allow for a greater range of subtlely since the people making the music don't have to worry about quieter sound being lost in the air between the listener and loudspeakers?

One would think, but it pretty much means people blast their ears directly and all nuance is lost.

There are good earbuds, but most people are using the ones that came with their iphone or whatever. The reason music is normalized to 100% is because people decide if they like a song in about 2 seconds and if that 2 seconds is not full volume you lose them.

So as with most things wrong with modern society, the real reason things suck is that people don't have or spend enough time to do things right.

Yes, those rancid farkers not spending billions of dollars on earbuds that meet your aproval and not listening to the music you like how you want them to.

RoyBatty:Hey subby, no pointing to Amanda Marcotte and say "here somes the science". Marcotte doesn't exist in a scientific universe.

The science was at i09.

[i.imgur.com image 850x702]

All Marcotte gave us was a load of derailing, off-topic, citation-free, strawmen horseshiat about how men oppress women, and some self-victimizing, self-loathing, martyr crapola about being made to suffer since she has a uterus.

[i.imgur.com image 584x115]

[i.imgur.com image 573x146]

Subby, did you have a problem finding the link to the source material?

I stopped clicking on Slate links. Long time ago. Depressing that people get money for that derivative crap, even worse when it's "let's use this random factoid we found as a jumping off point to stupid bullshiat".

In any case, thanks for doing so. Although their point was in the end it was inconclusive.

kroonermanblack:Yes, those rancid farkers not spending billions of dollars on earbuds that meet your aproval and not listening to the music you like how you want them to.

Yeah, it's a good thing we all live in a vacuum where the buying decisions of the masses don't affect the media that's made available for our consumption. They might have canceled Firefly or something, otherwise.

Wolfmanjames:My ladyfriend is ridiculously sensitive to the cold. As in she wears longjohns at 55 F. She's African-American, so she jokes it's her jeans. Meanwhile her son isn't the hothouse flower she is.

It's amazing you got the apostrophe in "it's" right, but managed to misspell "genes."

Shakin_Haitian:Wolfmanjames: My ladyfriend is ridiculously sensitive to the cold. As in she wears longjohns at 55 F. She's African-American, so she jokes it's her jeans. Meanwhile her son isn't the hothouse flower she is.

It's amazing you got the apostrophe in "it's" right, but managed to misspell "genes."

max_pooper:Shakin_Haitian: Wolfmanjames: My ladyfriend is ridiculously sensitive to the cold. As in she wears longjohns at 55 F. She's African-American, so she jokes it's her jeans. Meanwhile her son isn't the hothouse flower she is.

It's amazing you got the apostrophe in "it's" right, but managed to misspell "genes."

lewismarktwo:Oh and as for women being cold, yeah that's fine, they can be as cold as they want. But when I'm already in a tshirt and shorts and hot, they don't get to turn the heat up. They get to put on a goddamned sweater, or more accurately some actual clothing.

You don't get to set the thermostat to 85 in the summer just because you want to look sexy in your slut clothes.

Shakin_Haitian:Wolfmanjames: My ladyfriend is ridiculously sensitive to the cold. As in she wears longjohns at 55 F. She's African-American, so she jokes it's her jeans. Meanwhile her son isn't the hothouse flower she is.

It's amazing you got the apostrophe in "it's" right, but managed to misspell "genes."

I was amazed when Phil Plait went to Slate from Discover. I suppose it's a bigger audience, but to share a masthead with Amanda Marcotte, the person who defended having cartoon spearchuckers in her book until she realized just how severe the backlash was.

I loved this gem: The chefs do say that Japan is now more progressive when it comes to accepting women in sushi schools (it also helps that the country lifted a ban on women working past 10 p.m. in 1999). Progress!

kroonermanblack:lewismarktwo: theorellior: Shakin_Haitian: Wouldn't that allow for a greater range of subtlely since the people making the music don't have to worry about quieter sound being lost in the air between the listener and loudspeakers?

One would think, but it pretty much means people blast their ears directly and all nuance is lost.

There are good earbuds, but most people are using the ones that came with their iphone or whatever. The reason music is normalized to 100% is because people decide if they like a song in about 2 seconds and if that 2 seconds is not full volume you lose them.

So as with most things wrong with modern society, the real reason things suck is that people don't have or spend enough time to do things right.

Yes, those rancid farkers not spending billions of dollars on earbuds that meet your aproval and not listening to the music you like how you want them to.

My husband teased me about my cold feet, well more that he thought I was exaggerating my need for layers of clothing / socks in the middle of the summer, until the first time I spent the night and he rolled over to grab my ice cold bum in the middle of the night. Now he doesn't question me when I say that I'm cold. He also doesn't let me use him as a bum warmer.

Shakin_Haitian:I've pretty much stopped watching 90% of movies because the audio engineers think that it's really farking cool to have the action scenes be about a thousand times louder than scenes with dialogue. There's been times, back when I used to smoke, where we had the dialogue barely audible and I'd go out to smoke and could hear the action scenes dozens of feet down the road. I think it was the Avengers or something, but that shiat is flat out unacceptable.

Some receiver and TV makers actually build in a mode to combat this. I think its often labelled "night time mode". It uses the DSP to real time change the dynamic range so the difference between dialog and action is minimal.

Sadly, this is either too new, or I'm too poor to own anything with this function, but as an apartment dweller I really wish I did.

Husband and I both like to keep it around 74. I tend to get too warm easily, but when it's cold I take longer to warm up and my hands, feet, and butt cheeks will feel like ice. Poor husband, spooning my icy ass.

gadian:My husband teased me about my cold feet, well more that he thought I was exaggerating my need for layers of clothing / socks in the middle of the summer, until the first time I spent the night and he rolled over to grab my ice cold bum in the middle of the night. Now he doesn't question me when I say that I'm cold. He also doesn't let me use him as a bum warmer.

To everyone having trouble hearing the dialog in movies I hear you I really do. My surround sound receiver is quite old and the remote stopped working a few months ago. I couldn't find a replacement for ages so basically I had to stop watching movies at night because I didn't feel like getting up to fiddle with the volume. I finally broke down and bought an all in one that while it won;t do anything advanced will change the volume.

If you do have a decent surround sound setup try tuning your center channel way louder than the other speakers, it should help you hear dialog in most movies without explosions rattling your windows. The dynamic range they put in most movies is completely unnecessary. I shouldn't have to be holding my remote finger poised on the volume buttons whilst watching a movie.

I find that they have some really talented writers over there. For me, as someone who is right-of-center politically, it's nice to read intelligent, well-reasoned political analysis from a smart Liberal perspective. It keeps me grounded.

They do have some moonbats, though, but you have to admit that Amanda Marcotte is just a very successful and very talented Internet troll.